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The Shakespeare Conference: SHK 17.0709 Thursday, 3 August 2006
From: Al Magary <
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Date: Tuesday, 01 Aug 2006 22:56:23 -0700
Subject: Shakespeare in Big Type
Garrison Keillor's Writer's Almanac newsletter
(http://mail.publicradio.org/content/506927/forms/apm_signup.htm),
observing the Tuesday birthday of Herman Melville (1819), relates this
anecdote about the young author's discovering Shakespeare in 1847, after
his return from whaling: ". . . he borrowed an edition of Shakespeare
from a friend. He'd always had trouble reading Shakespeare because he
had poor eyesight, and most of the Shakespeare editions were printed
with small type. But this one was printed in large type, and Melville
was blown away by what he could finally enjoy. He wrote in a letter to
his friend, 'Dolt . . . that I am, I have lived more than 29 years, &
until a few days ago, never made close acquaintance with the divine
William. ... I now exult over it, page after page.'"
Aye, very like a whale.
Cheers,
Al Magary
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